Words by Jesse Serwer, Photo by Martei Korley
As a producer, Ricky Blaze has crafted tunes by artists from Vybz Kartel and Kes the Band to Santigold. As an artist, he was blending dancehall and EDM before most anyone else had a thought to do so, and has dabbled in hip-hop as well. But our favorite tunes from the Brooklyn quadruple threat (Ricky got his start as a dancer and DJ) tend to be his minimalist forays into reggae.
His latest solo tune “N3xt Lin3”, from his upcoming album Overrated (look out for the single of the same name featuring Kranium and Shaggy soon) takes reggae’s basic elements and skews them towards the emo R&B of Frank Ocean and Drake. With Labor Day on the horizon, the track has an appropriately end-of-the-summer type of vibe. Just like the season, our least favorite thing about “N3xt Lin3” is that it’s not long enough.
For more Ricky Blaze, read his LargeUp interview here.